In 2014, Bloodhound SSC will attempt to reach 1600 kilometres per hour (1000 miles per hour), smashing the land speed record in the process. This week the team successfully tested the vehicle's rocket engine at a Royal Air Force base at St Mawgan, south-west UK. Paul Marks snapped some of the action

Bloodhound SSC will use advanced additive manufacturing techniques to get its weight down as much as possible. For instance, the nose cone pictured is 3D-printed from titanium and, being the part that splits the airflow, effectively becomes the first part of the car to go supersonic, says project engineer Dan Johns. Even the vehicle's steering wheel will be 3D-printed. Bloodhound has an extensive educational outreach programme, and these facets of the design have helped make the car a compelling story for UK physics teachers.